Surfrider Foundation views beach access as a universal right, and Surfrider’s policy on beach access states key principles we view as important for ensuring that healthy and clean coasts and a vibrant ocean are accessible and beneficial for all people. A growing threat we've seen to beach access is rising costs for public parking and reductions in public parking spaces. To get a better understanding of what this looks like along the East Coast and Great Lakes, check out our first blog in this series, The Hidden Cost of a Beach Day: How Parking Restrictions Threaten Public Access.
If you are concerned about threats to public parking in your community, there are key strategies and actions that may work for you and your community; however, there is not a one size fits all approach or solution. Based on Surfrider’s efforts and the work of beach advocates across the country, we have compiled recommendations and action ideas to consider when faced with potential threats to public parking and beach access.
Research the Issue
As with most Surfrider Foundation campaigns, a good first step is to take some time to gather information about the issue. Familiarizing yourself with the current situation in your community and taking into account additional details and history about parking will provide a good foundation to raise awareness, communicate with decision-makers, and engage in the decision-making process. It can also be helpful to know what the situation is in areas similar to yours to use for comparisons, examples, and ideas.
Action Ideas for Researching the Issue
- Research public parking availability in your community and nearby communities. Some questions to get you started:
- What is the current public parking situation in your community? Checking your local municipal code is a good way to see the status quo. For example, are there already parking limitations in place like restricted hours for beach parking? How early do nearby beach parks (and their parking lots) open, and how late do they close?
- Is there a history of parking changes or debate about parking?
- What are the public parking options in nearby communities? Have any recently made changes to public parking availability or costs?
- What individuals or groups are leading the push for parking reductions or restrictions? Are there particular reasons they cite? Are the reasons justified, or a pretext?
- Brainstorm questions you have about the proposal and what additional information you may need to determine potential solutions and alternatives:
- For example, if a local town is citing high costs to operate and maintain the public beach and recreational amenities as a reason for implementing or raising parking fees, are the numbers and economic need for parking fees transparent to the public?
- Is there another source of funding that could be substituted in for parking revenue?
- Are there ways to make parking prices more equitable?
- Are there ways to increase public transport or walking/biking options to get people safely to the beach?
- Check out local and state law.
- Different states may require different processes if public parking is reduced. Familiarize yourself with your state’s laws and local coastal management plan or similar rules.
- Surfrider’s Beachapedia website is a great resource for state beach access policies. To find state-specific access information, select your state from the drop-down menu. Then, select “Beach Access” from the “Indicators” list.
Raise Awareness & Build a Coalition
Once you are familiar with the issue, you are well positioned to raise awareness about it and seek out allies. Beach access is important to many people, so a diverse array of groups such as bird watchers, parents, anglers, tourism and business bureaus, realtors, and/or home owners associations may be on your side. Groups that rely on tourism and recreation dollars are also foreseeably opposed to reduced or eliminated beach parking and opposed to high parking fees.
Action Ideas for Raising Awareness & Building a Coalition
- Consider starting a social media group or making posts in local community groups to start gathering interest and information. Remember to be respectful and informative in your posts – you want to encourage people to join your efforts!
- Create unique messaging and visuals to make the issue easy for others to digest: charts, tables, and graphs are great tools to display information, such as changes to the number of parking spaces, versus changes to a community or state population over a period of time (i.e., supply versus demand).
- Contact local news and media outlets to update them about the parking changes. You can submit a letter to the editor, community note, or op-ed about the issue.
- Reach out to other people, groups, and organizations that might be impacted by the changes. Have a conversation with them about the issue, your concerns, and whether they share any concerns or have additional thoughts.
- Host a public forum or town hall for those interested in the issue to gather, share concerns and ideas, and make a plan for next steps. Invite key decision-makers to join the event to better understand the issue.
Outreach to Decision-Makers
Once you have spent some time understanding the issue and the interests of your coalition, reach out to have a chat with local officials. For officials who may support a reduction or restriction in parking, knowing their reasons will help you understand their perspective, start a dialogue, and help you try to identify alternative possible solutions that may be available. For example, if parking fees are proposed solely for a financial reason, you could then discuss alternative funding sources that do not interfere with equitable access. Other decision-makers may be undecided and your conversation can help them gain a better understanding of the community’s concerns. Finally, connecting with officials that align with you and your coalition can help you plan how you will engage in the decision-making process.
Action Ideas for Outreach to Decision-Makers
- Contact your local decision-makers and request a meeting to discuss the parking changes and your concerns. Provide specific examples of how the changes may negatively impact you or impact equitable public access.
- Coordinate a letter writing effort to make sure the decision-makers are aware of public attention and concern about the proposal. This can be a worthwhile activity to conduct in conjunction with a public forum or town hall.
- Contact other local leaders who may not be the decision-makers on this issue but have important voices in the community and may persuasively weigh-in on the issue. For example: heads of local business groups, neighborhood associations, or recreational groups.
Engage in the Decision-Making Process
Once you know the lay of the land and the various players, jumping into the governance process can be a good next step. Testifying or providing comments at hearings is a good way to let your position be known. Sometimes officials are unaware of the effect of changes to parking fees and rules can have on the public. This is also a good time to show that others share your concerns and to provide possible solutions.
Action Ideas for Engaging in the Decision-Making Process
- Attend and sign-up to provide comments at public meetings and hearings about the proposal.
- These meetings and instructions for how to attend and participate are available on local governments’ websites. You can also always call and ask!
- Consider proposing these ideas and alternatives based on the potential changes in your community:
- Before permanent changes that will restrict or reduce public parking, request a survey to collect more information about community usage of and demand for parking in the area and public opinion of the different options for changes.
- If the restriction is narrower hours for public parking, seek extensions and longer periods for public parking during key times and/or seasons. For example, beach parking that’s only available from 9 am to 5 pm is unreasonable, as that prevents people who have typical “9 to 5” working hours from accessing the beach.
- If the restriction is price, seek a more measured or incremental price increase. Could a waiver program or discount option help beachgoers that may be disproportionately impacted by the changes?
- Urge the local government to implement a transparent process for determining parking prices and how those funds are being allocated.
- If public parking is being removed in one area, seek new public parking availability nearby or the expansion of existing public lots.
- Seek improvements in public transportation options to the beach.
- Seek improvements in biking and walking access to the beach.
At the heart of this issue is a simple, shared goal: enjoyment of the beach for all. Restrictive parking policies and soaring fees erode open, equitable access to our coasts. Whether you’re a surfer chasing waves, a family enjoying a day in the sand, or a visitor discovering a new shoreline, everyone should have the opportunity to take that first step onto the beach without unnecessary barriers. By raising our voices, building coalitions, and pushing for fair solutions, we can ensure that our shores remain open, welcoming, and accessible to all.
Contact your local Surfrider chapter to get involved in advocating for public beach access. Stay tuned for more access related topics to come in our Beach Access blogs.